Conrad Palaeologus I
This is an autobiography of Conrad Palaeologus I's life in Cyber Nations. Though it is not yet complete, it's goal is to document the events that create who he is today, and remember what he has done. =Short Information= CN Forum Name: Conrad Palaeologus I Nation Ruler Name: Conrad Palaeologus I Nation Name: Empire of Byzantium Joined the game on: May 29th, 2006 =Overview= Conrad Palaeologus I is the Ruler of the Empire of Byzantium. He has been playing Cyber Nations since May 29th, 2006 under the guise of two nations, the Belgian Commonwealth under the rule of Conrad von Himmler from May 29th, 2006 until June 12th, 2007, and the Empire of Byzantium under the rule of Conrad Palaeologus I from June 12th, 2007 until Present Day. He has been apart of 6 alliances, half of which he co-founded. The Legion, The Byzantine Empire, the Norden Verein, the Senatus Populusque Romanus, The German Empire, and Alpha Orionis - in which he currently presides in. =Title= His Imperial Majesty, Conrad Palaeologus I, Emperor of the Byzantines, Protector of all Greek and Latin Peoples, Defender of the Libertarian Socialist Federation, and the Champion of Knowledge, Logic, and Reason =Political Positions Held/Holding= Former Legion Diplomat, Former Legion Historian, Former Legion Librarian, Former Legion Director of Communications, Emperor Emeritus of The Byzantine Empire, Former Baselios of Thracia of The Byzantine Empire, Former Norden Verein Diplomat, Former Consul of the Senatus Populusque Romanus, Former Regentor of the Senatus Populusque Romanus, Former Dictator of the Senatus Populusque Romanus, Former Imperial Ambassador of The German Empire, Former Imperial Minister of Foreign Affairs of The German Empire, Former Imperial Senator of The German Empire, Former Imperial Justice of The German Empire Minister of Foreign Affairs of Alpha Orionis, Grand Master of the Order of Orion =Founding of the Belgian Commonwealth= The old nation of Belgium had recently turned their attention to their old colony of the Congo, which has fallen into disarray. Rebels under the guise of 'liberation' plundered the countryside in an attempt to cripple the current democratic government and to usher in a dictatorship. The Belgian Parliament- breaking international accord- hired Conrad von Himmler, a logistical tactician, to defeat the rebels, and bring stability to the Congo. Within weeks of the initial invasion, Belgian marines rounded up the rebels, executed the orchestrator, and proclaimed a new republic to guide the Congo into a new dawn. However, without the proper kind of leader to act as the benefactor of change, the republic quickly faltered and grew stagnant. When the Belgian government asked Conrad von Himmler, now viceroy of the Congo, to act - he ran in the presidential election. Winning an astounding victory at the polls, he enacted his emergency powers and declared a dictatorship. After years of progress, and the Congolese economy growing greater than Belgium's, the Congo became the Belgian Commonwealth and declared complete independence from Belgium. =Membership in The Legion= The same day that the Belgian Commonwealth became a nation, Conrad von Himmler submitted his application to The Legion alliance, existing in the Purple Trading Sphere. Various older members of the alliance quickly greeted him. Names such as Korlus, Zunea, VL Empire, and SocCarolina took Conrad von Himmler with open arms, and noted his eagerness to take on jobs to serve The Legion and its member-states. One of his earliest jobs was ambassador to the Blue Trading Sphere alliance of National Alliance of Arctic Countries. Eventually, The Legion's diplomatic corps assigned Conrad von Himmler to three alliances total, in which the other two names are lost to history. Other than diplomatic affairs, Conrad von Himmler only took on one more interest, and that was the rich history that remained generally unrecorded through the alliance's existence. Though Conrad von Himmler's career in chronicling The Legion's history did not eclipse until later, the seeds were planted early on. Early Political Emergence Through activity, diplomatic service, and questing for more knowledge of The Legion and of Cyber Nations - Conrad von Himmler nominated himself for the position of becoming the Legion Foreign Minister. He held ideas that would "revolutionize" the diplomatic corps, which in his mind, thought they actually would. Little did he know, his ideas were already in function, and he was just unaware. Though Conrad von Himmler was soundly defeated in the election, his name was not forgotten. From this defeat, Conrad von Himmler's political career would escalate, until he would almost make a run again in the future, with much more backing. The Purple Civil War In the wake of the election, the Warpstorm Alliance was plotting. They were discontented at The Legion for using the Purple Trading Sphere message boards as their personal blog, and abusing their Senatorial seats by sanctioning random members for their own amusement. So, after building a stockpile of nuclear weapons, they struck at midnight by attacking with six nuclear warheads apiece. Though their numbers were small, they did a significant amount of damage in a short period of time. Though initially effective, The Legion and her allies fought back, and crushed the Warpstorm Alliance. Conrad von Himmler participated in this war, as the Commonwealth Marines anarchied 3 nations, two of which were ZIed. In a short period of time, the Warpstorm Alliance disappeared from Planet Bob, and The Legion emerged from the chaos as the sole Purple Trading Sphere superpower. An era of peace ensued for all members of The Legion. Everyone grew as love and prosperity grasped everyone around Planet Bob. In this time, Conrad von Himmler bided his time, and slowly climbed the political ladder. He browsed on the forums more often, and in turn, his opinion was more respected. Through this respect, he decided to propose his first law to the League of Nations, The Legion's central system of democracy. After much praise, Conrad von Himmler's Legion Hall of Fame was constructed. For his efforts, Conrad von Himmler was awarded the title of 'Legion Historian'. His job became to chronicle The Legion's history and to induct members into the Hall of Fame. When the first members were inducted, they formed the Council of the Hall, in which they debated and voted on new inductees. Again, for his efforts, Conrad von Himmler was awarded the title of 'Legion Librarian', in which he ran the Treaty Archive and managed the League of Nations. The First Great War However, not all was as it seemed. Trouble was brewing on foreign shores. One of the greatest wars CN has ever seen was on the horizon. And it would all be caused by a story about a fictional rape. An alliance in the Pink Trading Sphere, the LUEnited Nations (more or less a joke alliance that achieved considerable strength) lost control of a member that was on his way to disbanding his nation. In an attempt to go out with a bang, he broke every rule on the Cyber Nations forums and supplemented this atrocity by posting a detailed rape story between two people on Planet Bob. Fellow LUEnited Nation’s members cheered this act, known as LUEicide, on, and no effort was made to apologize for the member's action. Astounded by what he saw, Ivan Moldavi -the Emperor of the Red Trading Sphere alliance, the New Pacific Order- declared war on LUEnited Nations for lacking control over that specific member. Quickly, the LUEnited nations mustered its allies and formed the CoeLUEition to curb the tide of the New Pacific Order and her ally, the New Polar Order. In short, the First Great War was on, as both sides fought to a stalemate, and either side was desperate for an advantage. The Legion quickly declared neutrality and offered to negotiate a White Peace for the conflict, even thought they were allied to the New Pacific Order, and technically bound by a treaty to intervene on their side. However, they would not maintain that position for long. Chat logs were uncovered between top a Pacifican official that after the CoeLUEition was defeated, they were going to turn their guns on The Legion, and extract revenge for their "cowardice". Once the logs made it to The Legion Cabinet, war was declared by The Legion onto the New Pacific Order, separate from the CoeLUEition, but on the same side. The One Day Way ensued, and under the extreme pressure of the LUEnited nations and her allies, as well as the second most powerful alliance on Planet Bob, the New Pacific Order surrendered. The First Great War came to a sound conclusion. Light peace terms were drawn up once the armistice was enacted, something that many alliances would regret in the future. The Commonwealth Marines did exceptionally well during the war, anarchying four nations during a midnight blitz. The Great Britain Incident Once again, Conrad von Himmler came out of the armed conflict with flying colors. His political career was again furthered when he was asked to be the Elections Chair for the Cabinet elections succeeding the One Day War. When the current Domestic Minister was replaced with Miemalkonnen, Conrad von Himmler was asked to take up the position of the Director of Communications, which put him in charge of reporting news, making propaganda, and making announcements on the Cyber Nations forums. Conrad von Himmler's time in that position would be short-lived. When it was uncovered that Great Britain, Founder and President (President only merely being a ceremonial title that carried no power) of The Legion not only had a dual account in the Orange Trading Sphere alliance and long-time ally the Orange Defense Network, he also divulged information to the New Pacific Order during the First Great War that The Legion had obtained the chat logs and was planning to execute an attack. Tempers flew, and it was asked that Great Britain rise to defend himself, but instead faded into obscurity and his nation disappearing. When things stabilized, Great Britain returned to his alliance after making a new nation. When charged with treason and multiple charter violations, he was willing to accept any punishment set before him. His ceremonial title was ripped away from him, but Legion Prime Minister Zunea pardoned him of his crimes in an attempt to bury the hatchet and move forward from the chaos. Conrad von Himmler was outraged by this decision, and promptly consorted with two of his close political friends: Klaus von Ausburg and Muadib. The next day, all three resigned from The Legion. =Founding and Membership in The Byzantine Empire= A few days prior to their resignations - Conrad von Himmler, Klaus von Ausburg, and Muadib met at the headquarters of the Fremen Legion to discuss their concerns on the action that Zunea took in pardoning Great Britain. All three of them could agree that they felt so strongly against what he had done, that it was time to leave The Legion and maybe pursue their own goals. None of them felt loyal to The Legion anymore. Zunea had betrayed what they all stood for, justice. Great Britain should have been punished for his treason, not given a slap on the wrist. In their rage, the three of them drew up the charter for their new Legion splinter alliance in the Maroon Trading Sphere, The Byzantine Empire. Since The Legion represented a watered down Roman alliance: they chose "The Byzantine Empire" to appropriately fit a break-off from that said theme. Once the charter was done, and resignations from The Legion complete - Klaus von Ausburg and Muadib declared Conrad von Himmler Emperor of The Byzantine Empire. In return for their loyalties to him, he declared them his Baselei, or his closest advisors. Soon after, The Byzantine Empire forums were thrown up, and the new alliance declared its existence. Other Legion members that also saw the same vision as Conrad von Himmler, such as Mr. Whaley and Jenne, came to The Byzantine Empire with the ideal, to create a new Legion. A strong bond was formed between the founding members, and new recruits were slowly rolling in. Hitting twenty members in its first week, The Byzantine Empire seemed to have a promising future. How wrong that really was. Early Growth and Government Creation The early months of The Byzantine Empire were filled with sporadic external and internal conflict as well as a roller coaster of growth and stagnation. That is all The Byzantine Empire ever was. It was riddled with conflict and exchanging between high points and low points. As Klaus von Ausburg and Conrad von Himmler (Muadib became increasing more inactive and took a backseat role in The Byzantine Empire) established the forums and started recruiting, growth began happening before their eyes. A new group of players from New England were brought to the forums and suddenly became active. It was soon decided that the temporary triumvirate could be taken down, and that all of the full time government positions could be filled. However, once Conrad von Himmler, Klaus von Ausburg, and Muadib stepped down and took their outlined positions - The Legion came to The Byzantine Empire with a serious problem. Vanessa, The Byzantine Empire's Megas Primus, was trolling in The Legion recruitment thread and talking with various inactive members about switching alliances and joining ours. One of The Legion's more established members, VL Empire, came to The Byzantine Empire forums and presented the evidence. Conrad von Himmler agreed with VL Empire, and Vanessa paid a fine for the damaged relations, but he refuted the claim that she asked members to switch sides. Conrad von Himmler stated that those members came on their own will, for the same reasons that he had initially left the alliance. No response was ever given back. Once the trouble with The Legion subsided, the stagnation started to end, and members began to flow back into The Byzantine Empire. In due time, the alliance reached 50 members. However, there, it capped. Best Friend Forever Again, more stagnation plagued The Byzantine Empire. Even worse, is that increasingly more internal conflict was taking place in the government. Mr. Whaley, as the Megas Kataphractoi, constantly argued against the ideas of Conrad von Himmler and Klaus von Ausburg, and vice versa. One would suggest a solution to any current issue, and the other would defeat. The Megas Primus replacing Vanessa, Trisscar, did her best to try to keep the peace, and did most of the time. On several occasions, Mr. Whaley threatened to initiate civil war if Conrad von Himmler did not agree to this or that. To protect his precious alliance, he bent to his will. He knew Mr. Whaley had the resources and the influence (in fear not respect) to take the Byzantine Imperial Crown away from him. Division continued to spread in The Byzantine Empire by each passing hour. Conflict arose from this or that. However, something would arise that would change that. Klaus von Ausburg, a staunch leftist, found an alliance that closely matched his ideology - the Libertarian Socialist Federation - an anarchist alliance. He established an embassy, and quickly urged the rest of the Byzantine government to sign up as diplomats. Conrad von Himmler was impressed (after he convinced them that he wasn't a Nazi: which was increasing becoming a problem with "von Himmler" in his name) with the community and their friendliness. Conrad von Himmler was interested in furthering relations with them to create something that was more concrete. In due time, a Mutual Defense Pact was signed with them, and the ties between both alliances strengthened. Friends were made, and even Mr. Whaley was quiet. More allies would come and go, but the Libertarian Socialist Federation would remain The Byzantine Empire's closest friend until its disbandment. The Imperium and the Internationale During the building period of relations between the Libertarian Socialist Federation, a member that will go down in history joined The Byzantine Empire. His name was Owned-You, and he will go down as one of The Byzantine Empire's most hated enemies. He originally came to The Byzantine Empire forums as a stark raving mad newbie that ran around boasting about his exploits on the battlefield. He got the constantly Byzantine Empire in trouble with other alliances, as he would go on illegal military operations against other nations. It got the point in which Conrad von Himmler had to kick him out because he was so much of a liability. So, with an ego the size of Planet Bob itself, Owned-You immediately formed a new alliance, the Syndicate. Surrounding himself with more experienced members, he returned to The Byzantine Empire as an ambassador. It was as if a miraculous transition took place. He was mature, cunning, and surprising diplomatic. Conrad von Himmler accepted him as a political equal, and talked with him on several different occasions. In due time, they both put aside their differences, and The Byzantine signed a Mutual Defense Pact with the Syndicate. Owned-You felt so honored that Conrad von Himmler signed the pact, that he invited The Byzantine Empire to be a founding alliance along with his alliance and two others to form The Imperium Mutual Aggression and Defense bloc. However, problems began to arise with the Imperium. The Syndicate was unhappy that The Byzantine Empire kept relations with the Libertarian Socialist Federation, their greatest ally. Secondly, the Syndicate's government kept getting couped, which obviously proved them to be very unstable. Conrad von Himmler knew it was time to get out, even more so when the Libertarian Socialist Federation offered them to join a bloc they were creating, the Internationale, an organization created to fight an oppressive outside force. Finding no sufficient way to end the Imperium, Conrad von Himmler ordered Trisscar to flame The Byzantine Empire embassy on the Syndicate's forums. Getting herself banned, Conrad von Himmler canceled the treaty and moved into the Internationale bloc. The St. Patrick's Day War When The Byzantine Empire joined the Internationale bloc, it was as if they were thrown into some sort of leftist gathering. Ideological leftist alliances (even though The Byzantine Empire's central government were all leftists, the alliance itself was not) of all shapes in forms had banded together to stand as one against the bulwark of the authoritarian right, Nordreich. The Byzantine Empire always had decent relations with Nordreich, but never anything more than that. That vision changed once a list of wrongdoings was presented to the member alliances of the Internationale. Conrad von Himmler quickly changed his position on his neighbor Maroon Trading Sphere alliance. As if caught up in the emotion himself, he offered the entirety of The Byzantine Empire's resources to take down this tyranny over the Left. However, not all the other alliances were so hasty. Some wished to simply make an uneasy peace with Nordreich. Some wished to have no part in any future wars against them. Nordreich, in the meantime, had planted a spy in the Internationale's forums to see if this union of alliances actually had the resources to effectively oppose them. When they saw the bickering, Nordreich issued its declaration of war upon the Libertarian Socialist Federation. Once Nordreich panzers made the initial push into their enemies, all of the Internationale alliances refused to support their ally, except one. The Byzantine Empire issued their declaration of war upon Nordreich, and scorned the other alliances for not upholding the treaty that they all signed. Regardless of the odds, the St. Patrick's Day War was on. The initial wave into The Byzantine Empire was also their deathblow. After one day of hard fighting, Conrad von Himmler surrendered to Nordreich and her allies (the Finnish Cooperation Organization and, ironically enough, the Syndicate). The terms were harsh (especially since The Byzantine Empire won all battles against both of Nordreich's allies), but Conrad von Himmler did not wish to see his alliance sacrificed at such an alarming rate. The next day, the Socialist Worker's Front declared war on Nordreich, but it was too late. The war was already over. A few days later, the Socialist Worker's Front and the Libertarian Socialist Federation both surrendered to Nordreich, receiving shockingly less harsh terms. The reparations were paid in due time, and The Byzantine Empire would begin to rebuild. Klaus von Ausburg noted, "This was The Byzantine Empire's finest hour". The Byzantine Empire's Finest Hour Let it be known: The Byzantine Empire was the only alliance in the Internationale that declared war on Nordreich for their blitz into the Libertarian Socialist Federation on St. Patrick's Day, Two Thousand Seven. Muadib and Burke As the conflict with Nordreich drifted farther and farther into months past, The Byzantine Empire entered a vortex of internal destruction. It would not be foreign armies that ended the alliance of Conrad von Himmler's creation; it would be the very people that pledged to protect it that would bring it down. With Trisscar unable to keep playing steadily, there was no peacekeeper. The Byzantine Inner Consulate was able to rip itself apart with no one to check it. It all started with Muadib. Falling utterly from inactivity, he was replaced by Mr. Whaley and ejected from the alliance for fascist tendencies. Seeking revenge, he attempted to pin a fake spy ring on The Byzantine Empire that "existed" in The Legion. Seeking to not cause a greater rift between both alliances again, Conrad von Himmler ordered Muadib's destruction. Operation Desert Storm was enacted, and within days he was destroyed. In the wake of defeat by Nordreich, some military success was actually seen. Things started looking up when the Commonwealth of Sovereign Nations and The Templar Knights came to The Byzantine Empire and tried to conduct a three-way merger to capture the Maroon Team Sanction before Nordreich. However, backdoor deals and intrigue forced Conrad von Himmler to back down, in that crushed the merger and caused it to fail. Then more conflict came to the alliance. Burke, an ex-ODN member, joined The Byzantine Empire and quickly became the Head Banker to reform the alliance's banking system. When using his influence to gain the Megas Domesticus position, he attempted to bias the electorate to vote for him. Though he failed, he was ejected from the alliance for breaking Imperial Law. In retaliation, he attacked Mr. Whaley and Jenne and respectively launched a nuclear attack on each of their nations. In a rage, a massive counter-attack was formed, with Conrad von Himmler at the head. Launching his own nuclear weapons, Burke was reduced to a pile of nuclear waste, and Operation Nuclear Winter was over. Before Conrad von Himmler ended his war, he changed his DEFCON setting to peacetime levels to reactivate his economy. Burke was watching, and nuked the Belgian Commonwealth while its citizens resumed their normal lives. From that point on, the Belgian Commonwealth would never recover. The last conflict to hit the shores of The Byzantine Empire was the Black November Crisis. News came to the government that an alliance, the Black November, was going to launch an all out war on The Byzantine Empire, for no descript reason. Tensions were high up until the day before, in which was discovered that the whole plot was a hoax formed by Comrade Vader, a staunch anti-Libertarian Socialist Federation individual. The end was nearing for The Byzantine Empire. The perpetual Antichrist was on his way to end alliance that so much work was put in to. The Coming of Persia Mr. Whaley had come across the leader of The Persian Empire alliance, Dark Lunatic. By some mere stroke of luck (or so it seemed) Mr. Whaley convinced the leader of a larger alliance to merge his membership into ours. After months and months of stagnation, The Byzantine Empire finally crossed the threshold of 100 members. Things were finally looking up. However, problems began to immediately plague the rebirthed alliance. Dark Lunatic was the undisputed ruler of The Persian Empire. If elevated into a Baselios, he promised us 100 more members to join the alliance. King Morton on the other hand, warned us that Dark Lunatic was simply just coup the alliance and declare himself Emperor with this newfound majority. Conrad von Himmler had to make a compromise. Take the extra members and risk losing his power, or giving the seat to someone else and protect the alliance as a whole. When King Morton was appointed Baselios instead of Dark Lunatic, The Byzantine Empire's fate was sealed. Dark Lunatic took his members and simply left the alliance they just merged into. Military action was considered, but the newly reformed The Persian Empire was already stronger than The Byzantine Empire was. As soon as the member count dipped below 50, Klaus von Ausburg and Conrad von Himmler decided it was time to act. Both had felt the alliance had finally failed. Posting a topic for massive internal reform, they were immediately met on the debating field by Mr. Whaley and Jenne. Klaus von Ausburg and Conrad von Himmler had suggested, "re-inventing" the alliance. They wished to rename it to Senatus Populusque Romanus, and changing the government structure from a constitutional monarchy to a republic. Mr. Whaley and Jenne not only defeated the idea; they attacked Klaus von Ausburg and Conrad von Himmler's character. The flames were hot, and neither side was willing to back down. After careful consideration, Conrad von Himmler felt it was time to leave. After posting his resignation succeeding Klaus von Ausburg's, he bequeathed the Imperial Byzantine Crown to Jenne. =Founding of the Empire of Byzantium= Conrad von Himmler, ex-Dictator of the Belgian Commonwealth married into the exiled Greek Royal Family in Great Britain to a Greek lady named Sophia. When her father died and left no blood male heirs for the throne, Conrad von Himmler immediately inherited the Greek Royal family and all of its wealth. Conrad changed his last name to Palaeologus to connect with the Greek people and culture. After quickly learning the language of his wife, he took a trip to Greece, and plotted political takeover of the country as his dowry for becoming the patriarch of royal house. In a few years, the plot was set in a peaceful manner. Elections were held in Greece, and the popular Conrad Palaeologus won the election, to then immediately disband the government and suspend the Constitution. After much thought, Conrad Palaeologus proclaimed himself Emperor of the Romans, and established the Greek Empire, formally known as the Empire of Byzantium. After the Constitutional Monarchy was formed by Conrad Palaeologus' compassion of the Greek people, he instituted mandatory military service, and many infrastructural programs to better the Greek people. The only thing he needed now was money. Justinian's Dream To achieve his dreams of resurrecting of the Byzantine Empire, he invaded surrounding countries. In a short time through Greece's highly trained re-organized army the countries of Turkey, Syria, Israel, Jordon, Egypt, Italy, Bulgaria, Serbia, Croatia, Bosnia, and Slovenia fell. Small territorial gains came from Libya and Sudan. With much added loot and plunder to the coffers of the Byzantines, the Empire was able to modernize the military and secure its new territories by the creation of garrisons to hunt down guerillas, and offer complete citizenship to its conquered lands. Conrad Palaeologus was able to achieve his goal of creating a reinvigorated Empire of Byzantium. =Membership in the Norden Verein= After the resignation from The Byzantine Empire, Conrad Palaeologus has nowhere to go. His former enemy, Kaiser Martens (who led Nordreich in the St. Patrick’s Day War before his alliance’s collapse and transition into the Norden Verein), offered sanctuary for him in his alliance. He stated that, “we were one enemies, but your honor is world reknown. You were welcome in the North as soon as you valiantly defended the LSF.” Thought sort of viewed as an insult, Conrad Palaeologus applied to be member and was quickly accepted. In this time, he made several suggestions in curbing the Nazi image that was imprinted upon their alliance. He also applied and was accepted as a diplomat to all Blue Trading Sphere Alliances, but did not stay for long. Klaus von Ausburg, who was presiding in the LSF, called to build another alliance. Conrad Palaeologus, who could not refuse such an offer from his friend, resigned the Norden Verein after eleven days of membership. Rome was calling, and he could not refuse. =Founding and Membership in Senatus Populusque Romanus= Upon Klaus von Ausburg’s resignation from the Libertarian Socialist Federation and Conrad Palaeologus’ resignation from the Norden Verein, the SPQR forums were constructed from the ground up. Once properly furnished, the two alliance builders began to call upon old members from The Byzantine Empire (which was teetering on disbandment after the Imperial government was reorganized) to come over to the new alliance and attempt to create a new community. Jenne and Mr. Whaley railed against the alliance and trolled her threads on the Open World Forum. They even openly accused the SPQR of recruiting her members. The claims never had any evidence to support it, and the alliance feel apart before any action was taken on either side. With Jenne and Mr. Whaley finally out of the picture, the SPQR began to build in earnest. A Golden Vision Conrad Palaeologus was a member on an external website called Alternative History. As an established member, he mentioned the idea of creating a Cyber Nations alliance with a Roman theme. The respected members of that community generally supported the idea, which in turn won the open support of the irregular members. Conrad Palaeologus posted sign-ups to enter the game. So many members would come in waves and create their nations based on historical cities in the real-life ancient Roman Empire. Around this time two members joined the SPQR, Njndirish and Gene L. Conrad Palaeologus spoke with them both about making a charter that supported an alliance with a large membership base. Choosing to make a Republic, it was expected that over 500 members would be involved, and would create a function republican system to fully represent the members of SPQR and keep the interest of the Alternative History members coming over. Low Point in Morale However, the Alternative History website administration thought otherwise. The administration saw Conrad Palaeologus’ intentions as nothing more than a malign attempt to destroy the community they worked so hard in creating. Before Conrad Palaeologus could respond, he was banned from the forums and retains that status today. He wanted to argue the point that the community base would be expanded due to that the website would be exposed to thousands of more people. That point was never argued, and the whole idea of having a large Roman-themed alliance was crushed in front of the eyes of the SPQR founders. The alliance continued forth with its head held low. Members such as King Morton and Njndirish left, leaving a gaping whole in activity. Conrad Palaeologus panicked, and signed a protectorate with Sparta. It was viewed that maybe Sparta could show them the way and build a strong alliance with the resources around them on the White Trading sphere. This never came to pass. Elections When the SPQR’s elections were held, Gene L and Conrad Palaeologus won the Consulship. Klaus von Ausburg was elected as a Senator, and given the title Princeps Senatus due to that he won the majority vote. In this time Conrad Palaeologus met a person that would change his life, and her name was Shurukian. Having been casually introduced to her on the forums, and bond formed that is unshakeable and invincible to this very day. The bond would first be put to the test when Conrad Palaeologus and Klaus von Ausburg held huge discontent towards Marshal Tito, an ex-LSF member that joined the SPQR and was entrusted as the Legatus Legionis. She reconciled their differences, and Conrad Palaeologus and Marshal Tito became good friends (Klaus von Ausburg would come around later). Marshal Tito helped push for major military reform, a brilliant system, sadly, with not enough manpower to fill all its roles. Nevertheless, Marshal Tito secured his membership in the SPQR. Soon, that would be put to the test. At the Brink of War Silent, Supreme Commissar of the Socialistic Empire, approached Conrad Palaeologus on the status of one its members, Marshal Tito. As the accusation goes, Marshal Tito spied on the Socialist Worker’s Front (an alliance Silent created) almost a year earlier. Silent claimed that he had forgotten about the incident, but reserved his judgment for any time. Appalled at this outrageous claim, Conrad Palaeologus told him he would have his answer in due time. He then approached the Senate, and pushed to defend Marshal Tito. He stated that Marshal Tito has earned his keep in the SPQR, and people cannot just come months later to obtain the expulsion of member. Gene L contacted Sparta about the situation as the SPQR was readying itself for armed conflict with the Socialistic Empire. When Silent approached Conrad Palaeologus again, Conrad Palaeologus told him that they were not giving him up. In an attempt to diffuse the situation, Silent stated that Marshal Tito was safe from his punishment as long as he remained in the SPQR. However, once he would leave, he was free game. The sentence was never carried out. Silent resigned as Supreme Commissar of the Socialistic Empire, and carried his vendetta with him. Mergers When The Byzantine Empire disbanded, several of its members fled to the Atlantic League as their new home. When Fastjohnl reformed The Byzantine Empire, a strong bond was formed between the Atlantic League and The Byzantine Empire. In due time, both alliances merged into The Atlantic Empire. At one point, Fastjohnl approached Conrad Palaeologus, and offered the SPQR a place in the Atlantic Empire. The offer was tempting, for a large reunion of the old members of the Byzantine Empire was viewed in his mind as a good thing (since Mr. Whaley and Jenne decided to join the Norden Verein). There was limited opposition to the idea of a complete merger, but it failed in the end. Marshal Tito railed against the idea of loosing the SPQR, and Fastjohnl wished to put “Atlantic” somewhere in the name. The Senate of the SPQR was not pleased with that development, and officially declined their offer. Another alliance, The Republic of the United States, offered to conduct a full merger with the SPQR. However, rumors of their ineptitude and their inability to keep conduct with the SPQR swayed the Senate’s decision to keep what they had. After elections took place again, and the government retaining their seats, many weeks of attempted progress took place. Suggestions were made on how to improve the SPQR, but were never carried out. The future was looking grim. Gene L, not wanting to see the SPQR collapse, would push for reform of the government in hopes end the folly of democracy in the alliance. The Imperial Reforms Klaus von Ausburg had suggested that a more authoritative government should be used if the merger took place between the SPQR and TRUST. However when that was put to bed, he wished to apply it to the SPQR. Gene L agreed, and pushed for a complete reformation of the government from a Republic to a Dictatorship that would be checked by an elected council. Marshal Tito railed against the reforms, as he thought they would exploit the people. Attempted were made to reason with him, but the flames were hot and trolling ensued. In a fit of rage, Klaus von Ausburg illegally declared himself Dictator, and ejected Marshal Tito. When Gene L asked him to step down, he did, but the damage had been done. Once the reforms were put through, the Senate internally elected Gene L as Dictator of the SPQR. Conrad Palaeologus assumed the role of Regentor, and Klaus von Ausburg again as Princeps Senatus. The Fall of Rome In the coming weeks, the SPQR continued to fall apart. Important members were leaving, and many more were becoming inactive and uninterested. It was until Gene L stepped down as Dictator and resigned from the alliance that the end was finally in sight. An attempt was made to recover the situation by bringing back Marshal Tito, but it was already to late. Conrad Palaeologus attempted to fix his alliance, but to no avail. In rapid succession of Gene L’s departure, Klaus von Ausburg resigned as well and joined The German Empire. Under pressure from Shurukian to end the madness, Conrad Palaeologus passed the Dictatorship to Marshal Tito, and resigned from the SPQR to join his friends in The German Empire. =Membership in The German Empire= When Conrad Palaeologus joined The German Empire in Mid-March of 2008, he was greeted as an old friend and given much respect due to his extensive résumé. He quickly was incorporated into the Germanic community and was quickly befriended by Kaiser Frederick II (Emperor of The German Empire) and Vlad Dracula (Reichskanzler of The German Empire). Conrad Palaeologus was determined to make this as a political vacation, but that would not last. Against the words of his friend Shurukian, Conrad Palaeologus made several suggestions to change the The German Empire. Applying to be a Diplomat to Sparta, and becoming increasingly more active on the forums, Conrad Palaeologus’ political ascension in The German Empire had begun. Sadly, it would undo itself as fast as it was created due to political unrest and much discontent. The Three Great Powers When Kaiser Frederick II and Vlad Dracula pressured Conrad Palaeologus to run for a Senate seat, he took the opportunity in front of him. Conrad Palaeologus missed the administration of an alliance, even though he was not separated long from the SPQR. He won a narrow victory against two right-wing Catholics. It was later discovered that they mass-messaged Imperial Citizens to vote for just them. When they were found out, they were replaced with Conrad Palaeologus leading the charge against them and pushing for new legislation. When the ink was dry, campaigning in that manner was outlawed and the Imperial Signal Korps was born. Shortly after, the Minister of Foreign Affairs became increasingly more inactive. Conrad Palaeologus, wishing to use his diplomatic ability in service of the Imperial German Crown, applied for the position while holding a Senate seat. This was looked on by many as a direct power grab, but more support from Kaiser Frederick II and Vlad Dracula overturned such suspicions. Conrad Palaeologus re-organized the Diplomatic Consulate, and appointed Shurukian as Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs, which was also looked with a lifted eyebrow. To this day, Conrad Palaeologus denies any patronage, and claims to have appointed her for her innate diplomatic ability that rivaled his. Though several events happened in between the ascension as Minister of Foreign Affairs and the next power, Conrad Palaeologus would also become an Imperial Judge of The German Empire. When Lech Walesa was put on trial for treason, Shurukian put forth an animated argument in favor of Lech Walesa. After deliberation, Simon Bolivar (Chief Justice of the Imperial Court), concluded that Lech Walesa was free from his accusations. However, under pressure from Vlad Dracula, Simon re-opened the case and changed the verdict to guilty. Appalled, Conrad Palaeologus railed against Simon, and asked for his resignation. He gave it, and Kaiser Frederick elevated him to the Judgeship. Continuum-NoV War Ever since The German Empire’s conception, a rift of relations existed between the Norden Verein and The German Empire. The Norden Verein, claiming that no other Germanic alliance was aloud to exist, had pressured them to be annexed into the Verein. Ever since that day, everything but good relations was to be had between the two alliances. When it was discovered that several (former) members of the Norden Verein were registered members on Stormfront and other Nazi websites, The Continuum declared war on the Norden Verein with The German Empire at the helm. The casus belli was not supported with much evidence, and Conrad Palaeologus expressed his concern. His pleas fell on deaf ears. Klaus von Ausburg and other Field Marshals in The German Empire felt that the military was not ready for the conflict, and was organizing a rebellion to make a statement. In retaliation, Kaiser Frederick re-organized the military under an ex-Communist Party of Cyber Nations member, Vladimir Kalashnikov. When the Officer’s roster was posted, several of the outspoken previous Officers were not on the list. In spite, they all resigned, including Klaus von Ausburg. Conrad Palaeologus was furious at the actions of the highest tier of government, but kept it to himself. The Inquisition Upon the return of a once cancer-inflicted member, Erwigkeit, he posted several reforms in which initiated the creation of a secret police force, known as the Inquisition. Conrad Palaeologus was furious at the prospect of being watched by an overt fascist organization and railed against Erwigkeit for this suggestion. Personal attacks ensued, but Erwigkeit backed down. When he pushed the issue again, Conrad Palaeologus attacked him more viciously, which wasn’t looked upon well by those watching. Furious at the obvious support of the government (which turned out to be a misinterpretation), Conrad Palaeologus resigned all his position and membership in The German Empire. Klaus von Ausburg beckoned him to create another alliance in a third and final try. =Founding and Membership in Alpha Orionis= Conrad Palaeologus and Klaus von Ausburg were determined to make this third attempt at building an alliance the one that would actually succeed. Hiding under this alliance affiliation, the two recruited followers to the cause. Members such as Aggamennod and Lech Walesa threw their support to assist in building the alliance. Talks also began with Marshal Tito to take the SPQR, which existed in a state of anarchy, and merge them into the growing name of Alpha Orionis. They would finally come much later. Conrad Palaeologus thought they were safe from outside pressures, but they were being watched by their old alliance, The German Empire. As of now, a large rift exists between both sides. Mafia Hit Three members of The Mafia hit Klaus von Ausburg’s nation in late June 2008. Without any knowledge as to why, Conrad Palaeologus asked Shurukian to look deeper into the issue, due to his suspicions of something more malign by The German Empire. After several inquiries and investigations, the plot was uncovered. Kaiser Frederick II had thrown a tantrum due to the events in which Conrad Palaeologus left The German Empire. Fueled by emotion, he gave the Alpha Orionis statistics page to The Mafia, and told them they were ripe for tech raiding. Once discovered, Shurukian forced Kaiser Frederick to apologize to Alpha Orionis (even though the apology was manufactured by Shurukian) and pay $50,000,000 in reparations to Klaus’ nation. Over a period of several months, Klaus von Ausburg received the payments, and restored his nation to a position that was better off than before. Growth and Dissent After the incident with The German Empire, Alpha Orionis officially founded as an alliance and announced that a protectorate treaty existed between Alpha Orionis and Ragnorak. Alpha Orionis fluctuated around 25 members for a few weeks as The Treaty of Messina (SPQR annexation) was finalized. Klaus von Ausburg assumed control of the alliance as Grand Marshal, and Conrad Palaeologus was appointed as Minister of Foreign Affairs. Shortly after, Aggamennod suggested creating an internal organization of Alpha Orionis’ elite, known as the Order of Orion. Conrad Palaeologus was gifted the title of Grand Master, with Aggamennod being awarded the title of Knight Prefect. The alliance seemed to be in a comfortable position, until it was learned that Rhenvar, the Grand Librarian that replaced Lech Walesa when he resigned, was plotting to overthrow Klaus von Ausburg and demand more democracy in the alliance. His actions were immediately countered as he was banned from the alliance and attacked by members of Alpha Orionis and Ragnorak. He had attempted to gain the support from the wrong people, and tried instituting a system of government that wasn’t wanted by anyone but himself. The Rhenvar Rebellion gained him nothing, and Alpha Orionis continued to prosper, even in the wake of the War of the Coalition. =Reigns= Category:Individuals Category:Alpha Orionis